Everyday, authors are creating beautiful works of art for all of us to enjoy while snuggling up with a warm cup of coffee or sitting on the garden swing in the summer breeze. But given our short amount of time to indulge in these amazing stories, which books are worth finding inspiration in?

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Thursday, 19 July 2012

The Golden Lily - Richelle Mead

Title - The
Golden Lily

Author - Richelle
Mead

Text Type -
Paranormal Romance

“He shouldn't have said that," repeated Adrian, eerily serious. He leaned his face toward mine. "I don't care if he's not the emotional type or the complimentary type or what. No one can look at you in this dress, in all that fire and gold, and start talking about anachronisms. If I were him, I would have said, 'You are the most beautiful creature I have ever seen walking this earth.”

It is not hard for an author to write a book that captivates
the reader, that lures them in for more. But it is extremely difficult to do it
every single time, each novel surpassing the other in creativity and suspense.
Only the first couple of pages have to be read to identify Mead as an extremely
clever writer that seems to accomplish this so effortlessly. Needless to say,
she has presented another fascinating story to her collection of young adult
novels, the continuation of Bloodlines and complementary to her successful
Vampire Academy series. Although Mead is infamous for her dramatic and
plentiful supply of action, there was a shortage in this book which is a little
frustrating since she has delivered so many times before. Even though it
contains a few flaws where Mead has not built up to the climatic point in the
most commanding way, The Golden Lily had effective development of the
characters and their relationships. This focus is no less interesting because
discovering inherent qualities gives a foundation to build on as the series
continues.

I believe that it is important for female protagonists to be
powerful and courageous, but people often neglect the term realistic. When a
character is reasonable, there is no struggle required to relate to them, to
understand what they are emotionally feeling during each situation. Written in
first person of young Alchemist Sydney Sage, this connection is effortless
because the way she acts is nothing extraordinary, only realistic and authentic.
Beyond her compassion, courage and good sense of responsibility lies attributes
that the reader is familiar with: A girl who is also nervous and shy,
self-conscious and who doesn't always fit in. These are the lead characters
that really inspire and draws a feeling of admiration from the audience when
they achieve something good. It is evident that even though Sydney may not be
popular or overly social, her peers give her a level of respect that everyone
hopes to receive. It represents the fact that people can be accepted no matter
what they are like; Smart, slightly dorky personalities included. The Golden
Lily is where the romance part of the genre becomes prominent, a development from
the implications in the first book which many young adults will love. And there
is nothing more compelling than a spark between two characters as individual as
bad-boy Adrian Ivashkov and sensible Sydney.

While there are many adorable relationships around the
central group of characters, there are also the tenser ones. A common
reoccurring theme that Mead endorses is the high expectation of family,
especially targeting father figures who have a huge concern over pride and
reputation. Nearly every person has been presented with the challenge of
overcoming the opinions of their judgmental fathers. Because Sydney has an
experience of her own in this aspect, she is aware and sympathetic of her
friends' situations. Mead is trying to communicate the importance of acceptance,
particularly being able to see past the flaws of your loved ones. Much to the
dismay of Adrian and classmate Trey Juarez, it is obvious that even though
their significance to the story is different, their fathers cannot accept their
sons actions. Yet through our eyes, what they did was honorable, worthy of high
respect. I thoroughly enjoyed Mead's important message that doing something to
be ethical or taking risks is worth much more than having an elite status.

With all due respect, Mead has still maintained a high
quality of writing that I adore and admire at the same time. The ability to
lure the reader in on the very first page and keep their attention throughout
the entire book proves her to be a very smart and consistent writer. But while
her fluency is usually near perfect and delivers a flow that makes her books
really hard to put down, The Golden Lily did not do her enough justice in this
element which was a little bit disappointing. However, I have come to realise
that it is just as satisfying to understand more about the character's hardships
and merits as it challenges me to reflect on my own. There is no doubt that
this is a worthy addition to her bestselling collection depicting the events of
a paranormal romance that leaves you hungry for more.